Wow this cover. Good story. Different than what I’ve read In the past but glad I read it. I’ll read this author again

While this is an intriguing and well written book, it is incredibly long. It was not available for kindle download and my ADE would not display the book on my iPad since it was such a huge file that it couldn't open. That left me with my only option for reading it to be either an iPhone (for a 600 page book) or my desktop computer (um, no). As a result, I was only able to skim the book.

The book seems like a fun, if unsettling romp for those who enjoy horror and scandal. The story-within-a-story element is fun, and the LGBTQ representation is awesome. It's a big commitment of a book but one that many readers are likely to enjoy.

"PLAIN BAD HEROINES, is a meta-gothic sapphic romp about a cursed New England boarding school and the horror film being made about that school. PLAIN BAD HEROINES will be published in October of 2020."

I absolutely loved this book and hope there is more on the way from this author. I was constantly surprised and found myself enjoying equally the chapters spent in the past and present. Each character had depth and I enjoyed exploring the school and grounds, though I'll be hearing the buzz of angry yellow jackets for weeks....

I desperately hope we can return to Brookhants soon.

Gothic horror set in a boarding school with lots of queer characters and multiple narratives, this is a book that not only sounds tremendously appealing it is also tremendously appealing to read. With vivid imagery (I may never look at yellow jackets or apples the same way again), hidden desires, and deception galore this book captures your attention and then draws the reader in deeper with an interesting overlapping meta narrative that touches on nature of truth and storytelling. This book will be an absolute joy to recommend.

I tried. I was intrigued with the first chapter. Flo and Clara's death was horrific. I just could not get into the following chapters that were set in modern times. The time switch, for me, was harsh and I just couldn't get over it. I wasn't able to finish it.

Plain Bad Heroines combined so many great elements: atmospheric horror, behind the scenes Hollywood details, Victorian historical fiction, and enjoyable romance. The way the author moved back and forth between the historic and current day plots really kept up the suspense. I didn't want to put it down!

<i>”It’s a terrible story, and one way to tell it is this: two girls fall in love and a fog of yellow jackets curse the place forever after”</i>

🐝

<b>Plain Bad Heroines (PBH)</b> is a story, within a story, within ANOTHER story. And being able to keep it all together for the reader AND keep it interesting is an amazing feat by author Emily Danforth. With the 4th wall pulverized, we get tons of little snippets into the background of each scene by the narrator, who is an amazing character in its on right. {ebook hack: bookmark the page- click on the blue footnote to enjoy and return to current page. Remove bookmark for future confusion}.

<i>PBH</i> tells you many stories, as a mentioned, all of which are about the women who fell in love at Brookhants School for Girls, or the surrounding properties. And all of the girls and women who fell to their untimely deaths at this same property. The story of Flo and Clara, two girls from 1902, who were so feverishly consumed with one another, that they didn’t realize they were being consumed themselves by a fog of yellow jackets.

And the running storyline, parallel to 1902, of our modern-day queer heroines. Merritt, the novelist, who’s never been kissed. Harper Harper, the out and proud movie star with the requisite older, artist girlfriend. And Audrey, bi-sexual, LA horror film royalty—her mother was a legitimate scream queen. These three women gather back at Brookhants to shoot the movie of Brookhants past—of its horrors, it’s mystery and it’s love story.

I have to say I didn’t think I was going to like this novel as much as I did. It had a slow start but caught up quickly. I enjoyed the narration. I do feel like the main characters were being fleshed out so well and then the ending was completely rushed for me. I would have liked to see how the final 3 months actually played out. Overall, great novel. And I’ll never, ever think of yellow jackets the same way. 🐝

I thought this book was going to be something different. I thought it was going to be a horror novel, but I didn't really find it to be so. I like that it's a story for and about queer women. as all of the characters are, but the underlying story of the yellow jackets and the supernatural mystery fell a little flat.

I've been waiting for another book from this author for so long, and this book was well worth the wait. Perfect for those who love a good murder mystery with a "gothic academia" vibe.

Plain Bad Heroines by Emily M. Danforth illustrated by Sara Lautman

William Morrow & Company, 2020

ISBN-13: 978-0062942852

Available: Hardcover, Kindle edition, audibook, audio CD ( Bookshop.org | Amazon.com )



Emily M. Danforth, author of the YA novel The Miseducation of Cameron Post, stretches her boundaries in this unsettling, haunted novel that reveals a buried history of queer romance and horror and some seriously creepy hornets.

The story moves smoothly from events in 1902 that led to the deaths of three students at the Brookhants School for Girs, tied to an uninhibited and shocking memoir by openly bisexual feminist Mary McLane, to a present day where author Merritt Emmons has written a book about the deaths that is about to be made into a sapphic “Blair Witch” style horror movie.

Two of the girls who died were co-founders of a club called The Plain Bad Heroines, which admires Mary’s unapologetic attitude, are found dead in the woods with a copy of the book, attacked by a swarm of hornets in an orchard of rotting fruit. The third acquires it after their deaths and is literally poisoned by reading it near a plant in the campus greenhouse where she is caretaker. The headmistress confiscates it, convinced that it is cursed. As the students abandon the school, both the headmistress and her relationships begin to disintegrate, and trapped almost alone in a snowstorm, it’s hard to tell how much of a grip on reality she has left. She’s also left remembering her college days, where a love affair led to her eventual inheritance of Brookhants, chosen by her husband because of its reputation as a spiritually important location, in a very strange manner.

The horror movie based on Merritt’s book will star the popular actress Harper Harper and the less well-known actress Audrey Wood. Merritt initially is starstruck by Harper and they hit it off; her interactions with Audrey are more negative. The movie will be filmed at the actual Brookhants School and on the grounds, adding atmospheric creepiness. Once the filming starts, it seems nothing can go right– it’s almost like the production is cursed. This leaves Harper, Audrey, and Merritt, a lot of time for exploration on the Brookhants estate. Black apples, rotting vegetation, and ominous swarms of hornets in the woods ratchet up the tension, and eventually the story behind the Brookhants curse is revealed.

This is a doorstop of a book. After its tense begining, it slows down for some time and, had I not known there would be a payoff, I might have set it down. I think a large chunk of the Hollywood segment could have been easily eliminated to slim it down. This is where a lot of the present day characters’ personalities are established, and Merritt’s romantic interests start to develop, but it is just too drawn out.

Danforth isn’t subtle about centering lesbian and bisexual characters. It is even a point of contention in the casting of the movie, where Merritt objects to Audrey playing a lesbian role, assuming she must be straight, to have Audrey come out and say she’s bisexual. The headmistress’ memories of inheriting the school are all related to the romantic love she and her partner had for each other. even as she turns on her.

Plain Bad Heroines is also about as metafictional as you can get; it’s a fictional story inspired by a book by a real person, containing illustrations and images of what I’m pretty sure are news articles about the book, that a fictional author has written a fictional nonfiction book about, that is being made into a fictional movie being filmed found-footage style, as if it is nonfiction. Both the director and Harper Harper use social media to affect the narrative, so Harper’s Instagram posts document the movie shoot and all of its “cursed” problems for her followers, creating a Blair Witch effect of convincing the audience for the movie that the haunting is real. Even the people around Audrey and Merritt are in on the gaslighting, so that none of them know whether they can trust each other or reality. It’s clever, and the unreliability of the people around them and the way the reader knows the three women are being manipulated is distracting, but it doesn’t detract from the sense of atmospheric creepiness, dread, and tension, with hornets and rotting vegetation always around. You will never feel the same about hornets after reading this book.

Danforth actually has an author’s note where she discusses her discovery of Mary Maclane in researching hidden sapphic history, and that she wanted to bring that to light through Plain Bad Heroines. I never had heard of her and I found this fascinating. Unlike The Miseducation of Cameron Post this is not a YA novel, although it might be appreciated by some older YA readers, but certainly it is an original book with plenty of dread and some well-drawn lesbian and bisexual characters that will draw in readers of historical and metafictional horror, Hollywood, and haunted houses. It won’t be for everyone, but this book will certainly find its audience. Recommended.



Contains: violence, murder, body horror, sexual situations, insects

Comment

The language in this book was tedious and distracting. I really wanted to like it because of the storyline, but I could not finish it.

An incredibly satisfying book, hitting many of my wheelhouses. Part historical novel, part contemporary filmmaking novel, and all LGBTQ fiction. Both narratives were engrossing and fed off each other well, telling parallel tales of the lives of queer women at the beginning of the 20th century and today. It had just enough ghost story, just enough Rhode Island history, just enough Hollywood-life, and very enjoyable footnotes! Highly recommended. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free copy of this ebook in exchange for an unbiased review.

Plain Bad Heroines mixes Victorian Gothic sapphic stories with a contemporary queer story. This was a really interesting back and forth, and the writing reflected the different timelines incredibly well. There were moments when I wanted to read more about Alex and Libbie, and other moments when I wanted more of Harper, Merritt and Audrey. The footnotes of the books made it increasingly enjoyable, and made you feel more involved in the book- as if it was being told to you directly. There was something dangerous and feral about the book that felt good to read, as these girls were not overly soft or polite. It felt realistic, even with the haunting aspects. The way everything wrapped itself up was interesting, but it's the only thing I would genuinely say I wanted more from.

Full review: 8/14/2020

When I heard the author speak on her book, her review was very intriguing-she described it as a "sapphic gothic," and since I am always on the lookout for original content, I checked it out-it certainly was original!
The story takes place in two time periods-in the early 1900's a schoolgirl cult based on the (real) autobiography of Mary MacLane was all the rage at The Brookhants School for Girls. But horrible things happened there-poisonings, yellow jacket attacks, and death on the stairs of the tower. Libbie who owned the school and was the principle, had to cope with these tragedies as her lover, Alex, grew more tormented and school attendance dwindled. Meanwhile, in the social media frenzy present, a movie is being made from the book The Happenings at Brookhants,, written by wunderkind Merritt , and starring Harper Harper, the hottest "celesbian" in America. Who knew that the present would start melting into the past?
The book, though humorous, was also horrifying and extremely creepy and the reader can never guess what the author is going to bring next.. It was a spectacular ride and I'm looking forward to seeing the REAL movie of the novel.

Finally finished this tome! This is the first Emily M. Danforth book I've read, and I'm pretty sure it won't be my last. Not only was the writing incredible, but this also had so many elements that I liked. Haunted gothic boarding school, a curse, sapphic polyamorous relationships, different timelines and POVs, and deliciously creepy vibes throughout the entire book.

I will admit I was a bit intimidated when I first picked this up, because it's by an author I've never read before and 600+ pages by an unknown author is a pretty big commitment lol. But I am happy to report that I flew through this beast like nothing! I absolutely loved this book and it only falls a star short just because I wish the ending was a bit more satisfying. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and I will NEVER look at a yellowjacket the same 😅😅

*thank you to Netgalley for providing me with this arc in exchange for an honest review*

Sorry. I can only read books that can be downloaded to my kindle.

Thanks for the approval, however.

God I wanted to love this book. I was really intrigued in the premise and I was so excited to have this awesome story within a story all about gay women. What I got was 200 pages of nothing. It was such a slog to get through just those 200 pages that I just can't imagine continuing on. I really am interested in the past stories and the synopsis, but the book hasn't even gotten to the synopsis yet. The characters are fine, but nothing great, and the plot at the moment is almost nonexistent. Sorry, but I just can't finish it.

This book was a strange combination of horror, humor and interpersonal drama. The horror elements were really creepy and well done. It also alternates between present and past storylines, all revolving around a boarding school for girls where some of the students met untimely ends, which is the basis for a movie in the present day.

While I enjoyed the storyline of this book overall, it was probably 200 pages too long and overly stuffed with meandering side plots and overly drawn out scenes and chapters.

This book is so many things at once and it does them all brilliantly. It's historical fiction and yet so aggressively modern in its language that I think it'll need (even more) explanatory notes in about ten years. It has no less than five point of view characters and they're all engaging, a feat in and of itself. The story jumps around but never lags, gives inside information and keeps you guessing, and it is so, so sapphic, in such a self-aware and unpretentious way. It's charming and delightful and spooky and thrilling and I am obsessed. The characters are each distinct and complex, jealous and selfish and hypocritical and fumbling in all the best ways. I had some minor gripes with the ending but absolutely worth the read and overall just entertaining. It's decidedly not the dark academia novel I thought I was picking up but it's the lesbian horror-comedy I needed. Thank you so much to HarperCollins for sending this to me I promise I'll never shut up about it 💕💕

PS I'm not sure anyone else cares but the writing had me very nostalgic for the voicey omniscient narrators and witty footnotes of my childhood (of The Name of This Book is Secret tradition) which like thank God

3.3 - wonderful, deep characters and character development - I wanted to love this book, but it was 200 pages too long, and it never drew me in